Bend, Ore., was hammered by the Great Recession as unemployment peaked at 17.2% in March 2009. Home prices fell more than 50% from their 2006 highs and new construction ground to a halt. Residents coined the phrase “poverty with a view” for the picturesque Central Oregon locale.

But the Bend metro has come roaring back with the top job growth rate in the country last year at 6.6%. The five-year annual rate of 3.8% also ranks among the highest in the U.S. Bend companies enjoy business costs that are 22% below the national average and its high share of educated millennials ranks among the top 10% of smaller metros. Add in a strong economic and employment outlook and Bend ranks No. 1—up three spots—on Forbes’ annual look at the Best Small Places for Business and Careers.

The Bend metro is populated largely with small companies. The largest private employer by far in the Central Oregon region is St. Charles Medical Center with three times as many employees as any other company. Healthcare overall employs more than 10,000 people in the area. Tourism and hospitality are also critical components of the economy with other top employers including vacation spots Sunriver Resorts and Mt. Bachelor.

Bend is a haven for outdoor sports enthusiasts, with mountain biking, rock climbing, kayaking and a multitude of snow sports. The Bend metro areas has 176,000 people, a number that is growing quickly thanks to a net migration rate that ranks fifth among small metros over the last five years. Some long-time residents decry the “Californication” of Bend thanks to former Golden State residents making up the biggest chunk of migrants, but the migration helped total employment surpass its pre-recession highs last year. Home prices are projected to reach new highs in 2017.

Forbes’ 18th annual look at the Best Places for Business and Careers splits the 401 U.S. metro areas between the largest 200 by population and 201 with populations below 262,700 to assess the best and worst business climates. Amarillo, Texas is the largest of the small metros. The top 10 small places hail from nine different states with only Oregon landing two metros up top as Corvallis at No. 5 joins Bend.

The areas are ranked on 14 factors related to job growth (past and projected), costs (business and living), income and economic growth, quality of life and the education of the workforce. We also factor in for the first time laws that protect people from employment discrimination based on sexual and/or gender identity. A tip of the cap to our data providers Moody’s Analytics and demographer Bert Sperling, who runs Sperling’s BestPlaces. Other info came courtesy of the U.S. Census, Movement Advancement Project and Cushman & Wakefield using Experian data (click here for a more detailed methodology).

Sioux Falls, S.D., ranks second for business and careers among smaller metros thanks to a young, educated workforce and costs 22% below the national average on Moody’s Analytics cost of doing business index. Median household incomes in Sioux Falls are $62,000—16th among small metros—thanks to an abundance of health care and financial services jobs. Sanford Health and Avera Health are the biggest employers in the region.

Citigroup and Wells Fargo both employ more than 2,000 people apiece in Sioux Falls. South Dakota softened its anti-usury laws in 1980 and banks flocked to the state. South Dakota’s $3 billion in bank assets are the most of any state and represent nearly one-fifth of all bank assets in the U.S., according to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.

Rounding out the top five best small metros are Logan, Utah, Columbia, Mo. and Corvallis. Logan features the third lowest business costs in the U.S. and the economy is expected to expand 5.8% annually over the next three years, double the nation as a whole, according to Moody's Analytics.

The University of Missouri is the biggest employer in Columbia and the Midwestern college town has the fifth highest rate of college attainment with 49% of the adult population holding a degree.

Corvallis, home to Oregon State University, has the second highest rate of college attainment at 55%. The Corvallis economy is expected to expand at a robust 6.5% annually through 2018. Household incomes are also expected to fare well with projected gains of 4.4% annually.